This was all I heard distinctly. I do not imagine either of them spoke again for some moments, and by that time they were back close to the conservatory, which they entered, the elder brother closing the door after him. I took this to be a sign that they were not coming out any more. I cannot of course, at this distance of time, vouch for the perfect accuracy of the words I have quoted, but the sense of it is exact. I was in a state of nervous tension, in which my hearing was almost abnormally quick; then the mention of our own surname had of course startled me into even closer attention, and through all, my original curiosity was still in existence, though to some extent it had become dormant. So when the time came for the question to arise as to whether I was justified in making use of my unintentional eavesdropping, I felt no misgiving as to my capability of reporting it correctly. But for the moment, as soon as the brothers had disappeared, everything in my mind gave way to the intense wish to make our escape. Would Moore come out? Must I summon him, or should I leave him to his fate and save myself?--for to me, as a lady, the whole situation was far more grave than for a mischievous schoolboy like my brother. I was revolving these alternatives in my mind when my perplexity was set at rest by the glass door opening cautiously, and Moore's face, somewhat paler than usual and portentously solemn, peering out. I pushed through the bushes so that he could see me, and said his name in the faintest of whispers. He heard me, and was beside me in a moment, not forgetting, however--I must say the boy had plenty of presence of mind--to close the door behind him. I did not speak--I was too angry to have done so in measured tones--so I said nothing, only grasping him by the arm to make sure of no evasion, as the two of us rushed down the _tonnelle_, till, breathless, I pulled up for a moment or two once I felt ourselves, comparatively speaking, safe, close against the wall and behind the shelter of the bushes bordering it. Then I really could not contain myself, though I had _intended_ to keep silence until we were outside the grounds. "Moore," I burst out, "how _could_ you? Breaking your promise and terrifying me, and, and--" I could scarcely speak. I was on the point of tears, which under the circumstances I should have felt peculiarly humiliating. The boy was distressed, and in reality, I think, not a little frightened. But he held his ground, nevertheless. "No, Reggie," he replied, "you must not say I broke my word. I promised I would do nothing without letting you know. And I did let you know that I had not given it up, and that I meant to do more; you dared me to, you know you did, and I called after you, `you shall see if I find out nothing,' and you only laughed."